A blog by Regional Leader for the North East and Midlands Elim Churches UK

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My house

“When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.”

Lydia has been baptised in the river in the open place where the team had prayed and worshipped God. We may think today that the test of someone’s decision to journey with Christ is baptism. However, here it is not baptism. It is whether the team will come into her home. Peter had stayed at the Gentile home of Cornelius, the Roman Centurion and now Paul and his team are faced with the question of staying in the home of Gentile Lydia. That is the test. And apparently she had to persuade them. So perhaps a member of the team was uncertain. Was it Silas? He was from the Jerusalem Church who had battled over the Gentiles coming to faith. Anyway, they went into her home, Jews and Gentiles united in God under one roof.

This week I was hearing from a leader of a Romanian fellowship in the Church I previously Pastored how in the many Romanian homes in the town God is moving powerfully and people are being saved, healed and added to the Church.

God is in homes.

The Elim Church in Cologne, Germany is now around 400-500 people on a Sunday attendance. It started 2 years ago with the Church planter and his wife who had been sent out from Derby Elim. They began with house parties and kept moving location to bigger homes as these parties grew.

God is in homes.

Jesus spent a lot of time in the homes of people. Peter’s mother-in-law with a fever, dinner at Matthew the tax-collectors house, the Synagogue leaders home, Simon the Pharisees house and of course (“I must” ) his stay at Zacchaeus home.

What happened in these homes? We read of healings, anointings, messages of peace and encouragement, salvation and prayer.

Shepherds need to spend time in the sheep pen.

Pastors cannot pastor from behind the pulpit or in the office.

God is in homes.

May our homes be filled with dancing
May our streets be filled with joy.
May injustice bow to Jesus
As the people turn to pray.

As we cross over the thresholds of people’s homes by doing so let us announce acceptance, belonging and peace to all who live there. They are not a number, they matter to God, to His Church and to us.

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2 thoughts on “My house”

Hi dear Paul, I was trying to post the following comment on your blog. .but it didn’t … I don’t know why. . I’ll try it again

What a great joy to invite and bring Jesus in homes. My father, who just had gone to be with the Lord on 5th March, invited people to his home in a village near Lahore, Pakistan . This is how a vibrant church was planted. Now the church has grown to other villages near by and over 200 people meet every week in different homes. It’s a big number in a country like Pakistan. This is Jesus’s mission. It’s all about Church, the body of Christ. Thaks Paul for reminding us the way… .. God bless you. .